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Updated: Aug 29, 2025
Identification of Circular RNAs using RNA Sequencing
Published on: November 14, 2019
The landscape of circular RNA in preterm birth
Yuxin Ran1,2,3, Ruixin Chen4, Dongni Huang1,2
1Women and Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University (Chongqing Health Center for Women and Children), Chongqing, China.
Insights
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) show distinct expression patterns in preterm birth (PTB) across maternal and fetal tissues. These circRNAs may regulate PTB through tissue-specific functions and immune-inflammatory pathways.
Area of Science:
- Genomics
- RNA Biology
- Reproductive Medicine
Background:
- Preterm birth (PTB) is a major global health concern with complex causes.
- Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as key regulators in biological processes.
- The role of circRNAs in PTB remains largely unexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate circRNA expression profiles in maternal and fetal samples related to PTB.
- To identify circRNAs associated with PTB across different tissues.
- To explore the functional mechanisms and interactions of circRNAs in PTB.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of circRNA expression in maternal plasma, monocytes, myometrium, chorion, placenta, and cord blood from preterm and term pregnancies.
- Identification of differentially expressed circRNAs (DECs) in PTB.
- Co-expression analysis with mRNAs, miRNAs, and RNA-binding proteins (RBPs).
- Functional enrichment analysis to determine tissue-specific and common biological activities.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in circRNA expression were observed between preterm and term pregnancies and across tissues.
- Shared DECs were identified across multiple tissues, suggesting systemic involvement in PTB.
- Functional analysis indicated tissue-specific roles for DECs in PTB pathology and a common role in activating immune-inflammatory processes.
Conclusions:
- This study provides a foundational understanding of circRNA expression and function in PTB.
- Identified circRNAs offer potential targets for future research into PTB mechanisms.
- CircRNAs play significant roles in both tissue-specific and systemic responses within the maternal-fetal system during PTB.
Background:
Preterm birth (PTB) is a multifactorial syndrome that seriously threatens the health of pregnant women and babies worldwide. Recently, circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been understood as important regulators of various physiological and pathological processes. However, the expression pattern and potential roles of circRNAs in PTB are largely unclear.
Methods:
In this study, we extracted and analyzed the circRNA expression profiles in maternal and fetal samples of preterm and term pregnancies, including maternal plasma, maternal monocytes, myometrium, chorion, placenta, and cord blood. We identified the circRNAs which is associated with PTB in different tissues and explored their relationships from the perspective of the overall maternal-fetal system. Furthermore, co-expression analysis of circRNAs and mRNAs, target microRNAs (miRNAs), and RNA-binding proteins (RBPs), provided new clues about possible mechanisms of circRNA function in PTB. In the end, we investigated the potential special biofunctions of circRNAs in different tissues and their common features and communication in PTB.
Results:
Significant differences in circRNA types and expression levels between preterm and term groups have been proved, as well as between tissues. Nevertheless, there were still some PTB-related differentially expressed circRNAs (DECs) shared by these tissues. The functional enrichment analysis showed that the DECs putatively have important tissue-specific biofunctions through their target miRNA and co-expressed mRNAs, which contribute to the signature pathologic changes of each tissue within the maternal-fetal system in PTB (e.g., the contraction of the myometrium). Moreover, DECs in different tissues might have some common biological activities, which are mainly the activation of immune-inflammatory processes (e.g., interleukin1/6/8/17, chemokine, TLRs, and complement).
Conclusions:
In summary, our data provide a preliminary blueprint for the expression and possible roles of circRNAs in PTB, which lays the foundation for future research on the mechanisms of circRNAs in PTB.
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